DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks enter Wednesday's matchup against the San Antonio Spurs on a five-game winning streak, with Maxi Kleber's production as a stretch big, with defensive versatility being an important factor.
Since the start of February, Kleber has averaged 10.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks, shooting 59.0 percent from the floor and 41.7 percent from the perimeter. When Kleber is on the court this month, the Mavs have produced a 125.7 offensive rating and a 107.3 defensive rating, resulting in an 18.4 net rating.
While continuing to play without Dereck Lively II, the Mavs have utilized Kleber often as a center option when looking to switch everything in ball screen coverages, particularly in late-game situations. Dallas has appreciated the impact he's offered as a defender and rebounder.
"With Maxi being healthy, our defense is, I don't want to say it's built around him, but he is a big part of that and also with Josh [Green]," Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. " But just understanding what Maxi means to us on the floor as a starter or someone coming off the bench. His ability to play defense; he can guard 1 through 5 and rebound."
The shooting threat Kleber provides the Mavs has enabled the team to space out in the half-court, making it easier for the team to attack and create quality shots. He even offered an emphatic dunk attacking off the bounce against the Washington Wizards, showing his physical capabilities as he manages a small right toe dislocation.
"On the offensive end, his ability to stretch the defense and shoot the 3," Kidd said. "And I think you've seen that he can put the ball on the floor and not just lay it up but also get to the rim and dunk. We're going to need that as we go forward. We have smaller groups to have Maxi on the floor or If we want to be big and play Maxi at the four."
Kleber's contributions go well beyond the box score, including his importance as a communicator and defensive anchor and his approach to executing verticality as a rim protector to impact finishes at the rim.
"I think we talked about that earlier, didn't we? How good is Maxi [Kleber]? A lot of his stuff doesn't show up on the stat sheet," Kidd said. "Just his talk, his willingness to help his teammates when they get beat at the rim, and his verticality. He put on a great demonstration of verticality tonight.
Having those defensive intangibles paired with being a 3-point shooting threat is a skill set not many tend to provide in the NBA. When healthy and in a rhythm, Kleber takes on a very important role for the team on both ends. The team's recent success has been an embodiment of it.
"Then he knocked down a big 3-pointer and showed his ability to put it on the floor and finish. He's just playing at a high level right now, and we will need that as we go forward. This wasn't pretty, but we found a way to win. Wasn't our best, but the guys stayed together, and that group out there found a way to put the ball in the basket and get stops."
Just as Kleber was an integral element of the Mavs' run to the Western Conference Finals in 2022, the team will need him to stay healthy and remain impactful after the looming NBA All-Star break to achieve a strong degree of success. Now, the team has Lively, Daniel Gafford, and P.J. Washington in the frontcourt rotation alongside Kleber, providing no shortage of intriguing lineup combinations to deploy.
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